[Book] Poison Study
Through a twist of fate, the main character Yelena, was suddenly made into a food-tester for the leader of Ixia- Commander Ambrose, when the current food-tester died. In Ixia, everyone is ruled under the strict and harsh laws of the Code of Behavior;any kind of offence will be punished with the exact punishment as what the Code states. In the exposition, it was revealed that she was about to be executed for murdering a general's son but managed to avoid her fate of being executed. Under the Code of Behavior, the next person to be executed should be offered that position and could therefore escape death. Yelena agreed to the offer, and starts her rough training to be a food-tester as well as trying to deal with her nightmares from the moments leading up to the murder that she committed.
I was intrigue with the exposition of the plot and is curious about Yelena. Who is she? What has drove her to commit murder? Who's the General Brazell and his murdered son, Reyad? The General seems to have a good reputation on the surface but as the plot moves on, it is clear that they have some hidden activities going on. They were the cause of Yelena's nightmares but I still haven't learnt of what they do exactly. I find Commander Ambrose to be an exceptional and interesting character. It's clear that he's determined to rule by the law only and to strip all the lavishness of monarchy away from his authority, but I find his personality interesting in a way that he's not an all-round rigid, tough person. He knows how to enjoy eating delicacies, unlike his adviser Valek. Also something to note is that he values the people who works for him based on skill and competence, not on gender, so it was ordinary to have female generals and captains in the nation.
So far, I really enjoy how the plot develops and how the mysteries keep building around Yelena; I'm eager to know who she really is and what will happen to her.